"Carlos, what happened?" Her voice was a murmur as she tried to shake off the effect of his intense appraisal.
"You've read the newspapers." He smiled.
"I wanted to hear it from you."
He took a sip of his drink and let the liquid roll over his tongue. "I know about as much as they know. But I'm glad that you finally came to me ... without my having to call you ... at least not in the traditional way."
She cocked her head to the side.
He chuckled and took another sip of his drink. "Let's say you've been on my mind lately ... been calling you from here." Carlos tapped his temple. "Perhaps, since all this went down. Who knows?"
She remained very, very still as her fingertips began to tingle, all senses keened and readied with adrenaline.
He briefly closed his eyes with another sip of the dark liquor and breathed in deeply, then smiled sadly as he swallowed. "What are you wearing?"
Almost rendered mute by the question and the expression on his face, she raised an eyebrow.
"The perfume? The scent. Name it for me."
"What?"
"Just name it, so I can remember it."
"Okay, look," she said, standing quickly and walking to a far end of the room. "This is way off track. I wanted to ask you - "
"My bad," he cut in, his smile widening, then tapering off as she leveled a warning glare at him. "I've lost a lot of hombres. My inner family. Juan this morning... . Then you walked through my door unannounced... . And I wanted to just forget about everything but you for a while."
"I'm not a drug, Carlos. Never was, and never will be." It was odd, but she'd meant to use a harsher tone when she told him off. She had to find something else in the room to stare at besides him.
"Then I guess you still don't know your own power ... one that can leave a man strung out. It's dangerous not to know one's own power." His voice was quiet, and his expression tender before he looked away.
"Did you get high this morning or something? You're talking crazy, and we're way off the subject of why I'm here." Her comment was sarcastic, but just didn't have the desired effect upon him. It was supposed to piss him off, get him to stick to the subject, and not make him look at her like that... not with the expression that allowed her to see his soul beneath the hard "You know I never touch my own product. That's how I stay in control and wealthy." His tone was calm, but there was a slow, intense smolder of offended dignity within his eyes.
She could feel her breaths coming in quick bursts of fury. His cool demeanor was messing with her head, and he was so blind! "You are not in control of what's going down here, Carlos. You need to get with that."
"Sit down," he ordered, now standing himself. "What do you know that I should know?"
All sexual tension vanished. Again, like a shape-shifter, his expression had instantly changed; giving way to the hardness of spirit that had driven her from him in the first place. He rounded his high-backed leather chair, abandoned his glass on his desk, and walked toward her so quickly that she reflexively went into a fight stance.
"What is wrong with you?" He seemed absolutely appalled that she was prepared to defend herself from a strike as though he'd hit her. Taken aback, he moved away.
She blinked and relaxed.
"You think I would hit you? Why?" Hurt and stunned anger filled his eyes. "Have I ever hurt you?"
He circled her and she matched his motion as they both walked counterclockwise to each other.
"If you know something, D, then tell me. Who did my boys? I know you'd come to warn me if you knew ... heard something on the streets, right? But you're so jumpy that now you're making me wonder. Don't f**k with me, baby. You know me well enough to know better than that - it would break my heart to have to ... •well. Lemme just say, don't go there. Talk."
"You're threatening me, now, huh, Carlos?" She'd stopped walking. "Did I just hear you right?"
He looked away toward the glass wall that overlooked his club. "I didn't mean it like that. We're all on edge."
"Your boys," she said, nearly speaking through her teeth, "chose a lifestyle - your lifestyle - that constantly puts them in danger. It puts other people in danger, and it weakens our community from the inside out."
Carlos chuckled and his shoulders relaxed. He walked further away from her and collected his drink, and then sat down heavily in his plush leather chair. He let out a breath and took a sip.
"Oh, baby ..." He shook his head and laughed harder, the tone becoming sadder. "You came all the way down here to preach at me? God bless you, you haven't changed a bit. I miss our arguments about my business." He took another sip from his glass and chased the ice in it with his finger. "I really do."